Quote Originally Posted by Mangiapane85 View Post
You never said they should. I never said you did. But you were definitely implying that snakes will do it because they prefer to or like to, and I just don't really agree with that. if you have the hides in the proper area across the temperature gradient, they won't have to risk their bodies by moving a heavy rock hide or whatever the case may be.
A prior post of yours reads, "A snake shouldn't HAVE to "move" it's hide. That's a little crazy to even say in my opinion." And I am, in fact, implying that snakes will "move" there hides because they prefer a temperature difference of 1 degree, or 2 degrees, or a 1/2 degree. You don't necessarily need to agree with that, nobody needs to, but it still holds true as fact. The proof is in the pudding, or, more accurately, in observation of >1 hide in an enclosure which allows for observation. It's not something easily discernible in racks, with 1 or even no hides, or in any closure with mulch for bedding.

I had uploaded the photo below here on this forum ~2 weeks ago on another thread for another topic, but perhaps it serves a purpose here as well.

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The two hides you see above were placed there by me while the snake was in a tub a few feet away dining out. After the snake returns to his home (no eating in the living room!) and as the hours pass the hides will move from their original positions. The hide on the left is in the coolest corner of the tank. The one on the right is almost in the hottest spot. The hottest spot is actually >100 degrees @ 18" under the heat lamp (this is a 40 gallon tank = 36" x 18" x 18"). Years ago we had put hides there but never ever saw even 1 snake which preferred that high a temperature. The very far right of the photo, to the right of the hide, is a water dish. By keeping the water in the hottest spot we not only take up space that the snake wouldn't use anyway, but we also allow for the humidity to range from 60% on the hot side to 80% on the cool side (yes, the humidity is the lowest right next to the water and the highest farthest from the water, still not sure how that is but evaporation probably figures in). We couldn't get the humidity up to 80% when the water was placed in the center of the tank or in the cooler side of the tank. We like a humidity higher than what is usually recommended. The last incomplete shed I got was ~35 years ago, and I have never caused an RI (though I've adopted snakes that did have RI).

Also, as you can see in the photo, those plastic hides weigh what, a 1/2 oz each? And so your statement "risk their bodies by moving a heavy rock hide" could never be.

The 1st few times, or few dozen times, that a hide is moved it might go unnoticed. But after 40 years of snakes, different sizes of snakes, different species of snakes, all kept with >1 hide on newspaper, it begins to become obvious. The snake goes into a hide and its coiled body occupies perhaps ~2/3s or 3/4s of the hide. Does it lie in the center of the hide? Sometimes. But not usually. We know this because our snakes are pets. We handle regularly, which entails lifting hides off them. It's not something that the rackers feeding F/T are gonna take note of.

Now, those hides in the photo are 12" x 9". Is the temperature uniform across the hide? No, it's not. In the last year I, like many humans, have been exposed to a temperature range of >100 degrees, literally. I've been out in July heat waves of >100 degrees and in February cold snaps of <0 degrees. Snakes? Tropical snakes? No. Never. Still with me Mangia Pane? (mia nonna always said that to me!) So, for me and other humans a difference of 5 or even 10 degrees ain't nothing, 'cause relative to what we are exposed to it's a drop in the bucket. For an equatorial reptile on the other hand, one that since dinosaurs have been pooping in puddles has never had a temperature range of 10 or 15 degrees, even 0.1 degree is noticeable. Still with me? Follow along now. So, the snakes coil up inside the hide and over the course of hours or even days they inadvertently push up against the more comfortable side, the side with the temperature that they feel most comfortable with. Snakes are hardly ever completely stationary for more than a few hours, they are nearly incessantly squirming (for lack of a better word) around. This can be indiscernible in racks, but pet hobbyists can more easily take note of this. (Ok almost done now.) When we use a substrate which allows for snakes to "slide" their hides a few inches in any direction we are providing a more comfortable environment for them and we are more cognizant of their precise temperature preferences. If the snake is always in the cool hide immobilized up against the side of the tank than we know the tank is too hot. Regardless of the temperature or what the "experts" say we know it's too hot 'cause the snake is communicating this to us via behavior. And vice versa, if the snake is always in the hot hide immobilized up against the side of the tank then we know we need to increase the temperature in the tank 'cause its too cold. Spero che capisci tutto